NFL Rumors: Insider confirms Tom Brady’s interest in Miami Dolphins minority ownership
Tom Brady’s retirement was short lived. The three-time MVP announced his return to football just forty days after retiring from the NFL, and returned as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' starting quarterback.
New reports have surfaced that Brady had an interest in becoming a minority owner of the Miami Dolphins. The report also states that the deal could have only gone through with the approval of at least 24 owners and the NFL.
We hadn’t spoken with our buddy @JeffDarlington since the original @TomBrady retirement broke before the Super Bowl — TB12 is obviously back and the #NFL has been turned upside down since: https://t.co/ZNKKVMCQ3H
In an interview on the Rich Eisen Show, ESPN NFL reporter Jeff Darlington shared his thoughts on the reports. Darlington said that while there’s certainly a close relationship between Brady and minority Dolphins owner Bruce Beale, he couldn’t say for sure if the deal would have been done.
“Yeah, there’s definitely fire to the smoke. No question about that. I think we have to be a little bit careful of trying to connect the dots. There are a lot of pieces to the puzzle that don't necessarily need to be connected. And I know that's a weird, cryptic thing to say."
Darlington continued:
"But what I would say is that certainly the relationships between Tom Brady and Bruce Beale, for instance, a minority owner of Dolphins, had created conversations about what Tom would do post-career and it was definitely about you know, minority ownership. The one thing I'd say to that, though, is that there wasn't a deal in place. It wasn't done. And would it have gotten done? I really don't know. I don't know.”
Tom Brady's contract points to possible attempt for minority ownership in Miami Dolphins
The reaction to this has overwhelmed me and my family.
The responses are equally moving and reassuring. Thanks for the well wishes and much love right back to you. twitter.com/RichEisenShow/…
Prior to these reports, rumors pointed to Brady signing on with the Dolphins after coming out of retirement. These rumors suggested that he would only do that if Sean Payton returned to the NFL to coach the Miami-based team. Those rumors were squelched when the former New Orleans Saints coach was not hired.
Still, Brady’s contract with the Bucs is for one year and holds a “no franchise tag” clause. This means the quarterback could enter retirement again after this season and make a play for minority ownership of the Dolphins team.
In the meantime, the rumors and speculations continue to swirl around Tom Brady and his plans for the future. One thing is for certain, he will start the 2022 season as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback after an offseason that left the NFC weakened and ripe for the taking.